THINKING FOUNDATIONS
Sequential thinking
Separate the order in which events cause one another from the order in which you may write the sentences. A later event can open the sentence. A later event cannot cause an earlier one.
1. Everyday example
Everyday: making tea
Boiling water that is not in the kettle cannot happen: the water has to be in the kettle before it can boil there. Pouring water that has not boiled is possible, so it is not a logical prerequisite. It is a choice about what you want to drink. Biology has the same distinction. A substrate has to bind before a product can be released. That is a real prerequisite. The sentence you write may still start with the product.
2. A level example
A level: event order and sentence order
In inhalation the diaphragm contracts, thoracic volume then increases, pressure then falls, and air then enters. That is the biological sequence. It is still logical to write: “Pressure falls because thoracic volume increases following contraction of the diaphragm.” The pressure sentence is first, and the causes sit in the because-clause. What is illogical is reversing the causes, not choosing which clause to write first.
3. Show me
Show me. This is the order the events happen, not the only order you may write the sentences.
- Diaphragm and external intercostal muscles contract.
Following the sequence is practice. It is not recorded as mastery.
4. Guide me
Practice question
Guide me. Which of these is a genuine prerequisite for boiling water in a kettle, rather than a preferred order of words?
5. Let me try
Independent transfer. My Progress records this only when the reasoning holds.
Practice question
Let me try. A student writes: “Air enters the lungs, which makes the thorax volume increase, which makes the diaphragm contract.” What is the error in that sentence?